I'd rather be having a quiet drink... and can be followed on Twitter @alcothusiast; and friended on Untappd (handle: "neilcake" - all welcome).

Tuesday, 12 July 2016

Spirit Log: Olmeca Altos Reposado Tequila

It
was Black Friday, but I wasn’t looking specifically for Black
Friday deals. I just figured I’d see if there was any tequila on
Amazon that I could use our Prime membership on – and there was. So
delivery is free, instead of the usual £4.50 or £4.95 you have to
pay to buy spirits online, and it was also £14 cheaper (at £20)
than at any of the other online suppliers. Here it is, the Olmeca
Altos Reposado.

It’s
only 38% as most tequila seems to be, but it is full agave, which is
a minimum requirement for me these days. Aged for 6 to 8 months in
American oak ex-bourbon casks, this particular variety is notable
because some of the agave used has been juiced using the
artisanal tahona method, where a 2 tonne volcanic millstone –
carved from one piece of rock – is used to crush the cooked pinas.
A full, and quite interesting story of the production is available at
altostequila.com, but it looks like the range varies according
to the amount of tahona liquid (and possibly other aspects of the
production process) incorporated. The basic Olmeca, for example,
isn’t full agave, but it does incorporate a portion of tahona
liquid, while the more premium Tezon, is certified 100% tahona
liquid. So what we’ve got is an intermediate level expression for
the brand, that should be decent quality.

I
suppose it’s worth asking whether this Tahona method is really the
most effective way of getting juice from the cooked agave hearts.
There must be an ultimate method, but what it is, I don’t know. For
now we’ll just have to assume the tahona one is a good one.

Let’s
just say first of all, it is packaged quite beautifully in a square
bottle with a small label and a fancy mottling effect. On opening, it
transpires that what looks like a fancy wood-topped stopper is
actually an oversized screwtop.

As
ever, the full agave proved popular with our guests Pablo and
Veronica on the night of opening, so were quite easily able to polish
off nearly half a bottle. My overall feeling though, is that while
this is drinkable and pleasant, with a fresh peach smell prevalent on
the nose, it is far too mellow to deliver my favourite aspects of
tequila. It should sting a little bit – and that quality seems to
be something that dissipates when the spirit has been rested in wood
even a brief while.

So
next up for me will be a return to the blanco varieties –
and after that, I think I’ll have to go the whole hog and try and
anejo expression – just to be sure –though I won’t be
going all the way up to extra anejo, since you’re looking at
£80+ for a 3 year old. For now my preference lies with the blanco
full agave varieties anyway. Nevertheless, this would probably make
an excellent introduction to tequila for someone who is a little less
familiar with the agave sting. And if you can still get it for around
£20 (at the time of writing, Amazon UK have it at £23.09 on Prime),
it’s definitely worth a punt.

Definitions

What happens when you zone out after having had a cheeky lunchtime pint.

Alcothusiast:

Not an alcoholic, someone who appreciates booze.

Anxiety, The:

The uneasy feeling that accompanies any noteworthy hangover.

Booze Buffet Mentality:

The propensity people have to go nuts whenever there's a free bar.

Booze Porn:Photos of alcohol.

Bread Chest:Not booze related, but this term describes the indigestion you get from eating too many bread products too quickly. Just putting it out there...

Crawler's Block:The inability to decide where to go next during a pub crawl - often resulting in crawl stagnation and someone saying, "shall we just have another one here?"

Crawl Stagnation:The result of failing to plan a pub crawl sufficiently - lack of a route, theme or over-familiarity with nearby pubs can all be contributing factors.

Excess Induced Alcohol Aversion:An intolerance for a drink caused (usually) by one occasion of overindulgence.

The Family:My whisky collection.

MOMA:

Moment of Maximum Appreciation. Every bottle has one. It's the time you drink it where you enjoy it most.

Old Man Pub:Traditional British pub, renowned for being quiet, cosy and frequented by old men. Much favoured by people who like a nice chat while they drink.Psychological Drinks Cabinet:Collective term relating to the kinds of alcoholic drinks a person has need for.Road Beers:

Cans of beer that you take with you when you go out, to consume on the way.

The 3 Types of Rum:White, gold and dark. Together they form the base of many a great cocktail.

About Me

Neil Cake is interested in all types of booze, but is by no means an authority or expert. Most of the time he's just trying to be funny, but he is learning, and enjoys sharing his adventures and what he learns on the Drink it How You Like it blog.
Thengyuverrymuuuuuch.